Vladivostok – General info Vladivostok, like Ekaterinburg, was a closed city during the Soviet era – even Russians needed permission to visit friends and relatives who lived there. It opened up to tourists in 1992 and since then there has been a slow but steady...

Brief history of Ekaterinburg Ekaterinburg was a city closed for foreigners, only opening in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Nowadays, tourism is just getting off the ground. This secrecy was mainly due to the presence of much of the USSR’s defence...

Visiting the Great Wall We recommend that you visit the Great Wall at Mutianyu which is fairly close to the city and has some splendid views. If you walk a few towers from the cable car drop-off you should have few visitors, especially if you visit mid-week. Simatai...